[MINGLE, ESPECIALLY TO NEWCOMERS] ROOFTOP FESTIVITIES!!!

[icanfixer]

WHO: All!
WHAT: Rooftop festivities!
WHERE: On a rooftop of an office building in the second open district!
WHEN: 8/14, evening!
WARNINGS: alcohol, tba as it goes


Banner displayed inside the train station, outside city hall, and on the most used residence buildings.

Follow the arrows.
So you're unaware. Maybe new. Or maybe you just didn't care the first time you saw it. That's fine. Between the banners hanging around key areas, and the flyers quickly drawn up in a similar fashion scattered across the city, it's hard not to know something is going on -- and there's helpful arrows, chalked on building walls and the streets the day of the party, to let people know where to go.

The Rooftop

A splendid scene awaits those who travel heavensward. Fairy lights connect the corners of the roof access building to metal poles at the corners of the building itself, lifted by cylindrical supports where needed, each one held straight by pots filled with well-packed dirty and stone. There's multicolored stars hanging from some of the lights, while various painted flowers hang on others, and what greets the ears first is some royalty free party music played from a CD player off the the side.

There's a long folded out table in the center for those who'd like to share cuisine, just set and serve yourself! Nearby is a space for Daan to do some bartending as well, a man who can make a multitude of cocktails and mocktails for those who want something less alcoholic. Also, pints of various ice cream flavors in a cooler!

Don't worry -- they won't have any odd effects on them, Don verified the lack of them herself. Not all of them are normal. Think loaded baked potato weird.

For those who'd like a quieter space, there's beanbags and a swirly, fuzzy carpet to sit on more away from the center of the party area. This'll be a great time to play some games, such as truth or dare, spin the bottle, and... whatever else you play at parties. Get to know your fellow man and such. Play the violin.

Naturally, no party... hosted... by Don Quixote would be without a space to fight, if one wishes to show off a little! It's also taking place on a swirly fuzzy carpet, just so no one smashes their head in, and there's a neat little banner hanging down from a string of lights that says thus:

WIN THREE MATCHES AND A PRIZE AWAITS THEE!!!!!!!
- NO KILLING
- HANDS ONLY

What the prize is, no one knows. But come find Don Quixote with your battle scars and she'll grant it -- and stick around a while, 'cause this party's gonna end with a bang... that is, with homemade fireworks donated by "a friend" through Junpei.

Anyway, have fun!!! Share words about your worlds!!! The society your characters are from, the cuisine they've brought, how they're working out in the city -- help the new kids along, too. There's more vets here now than there were a few months ago, after all.

Navi: Truth or Dare - Two Truths and a Lie - Hydra Storytelling w/Junpei - Drink Up With Daan - Qixi Festivites

Comments

[astraphilia]

[ Reno traces those connections in his mind, those similarities. Aether :: Lifestream; crystals :: materia... Reno doesn't know of any similar curses born from the overuse of materia, but honestly, the possibility isn't beyond imagining. considering how little they actually knew about the Planet—considering how arrogant they had been—

but Eikons as a concept, human vessels (or so it sounds) for the powers of this pantheon of gods or monsters, now that's interesting. a little scary, too, or maybe that's just the residual trauma of having seen Bahamut SIN summoned to lay waste to the city they were working so hard to build. ]

Do they remember who they are? The Dominants. [ mirroring Joshua, Reno takes a sip of his own wine too. ] I ain't seen all of them up close but I've had my ass kicked by a couple. Seems like it'd be... intense [ TERRIFYING ] to get taken over by something that powerful.

[ or maybe it's less a takeover than it is a sharing of faculties. what does Reno know! ]

Why worry?

[feathering]

Intense is... I suppose one way to put it. [ Joshua isn't the type to just go ✨ IT IS I, THE PHOENIX ✨ especially to someone whom he just met, but he will still likely have a flashy way of making it known. ] When you are not able to control the Eikon you prime into— that is, when you summon them and become one with them as you take on their form, then it is the Eikon that takes over. While you may still have consciousness of what is going on, you would not be able to control the body you are in.

In my case, priming into the Phoenix for the first time was a very emotional experience. My desire to protect those around me, as well as myself, was in harmony with what the Phoenix wanted.

[ But he won't talk about how that ended. ]

Whenever Bearers and Dominants use aether, of course they are able to help with the needs of society, and the people around them. It weighs heavily on their own bodies, however, until their own life is taken away. [ And that is why he worries. Joshua takes a rather large sip of his wine, until it's all gone. ] I hope it is not the case for those in Gaia.

[astraphilia]

[ even before Joshua comes out with it, to Reno it already sounds like he speaks from more than just academic experience. there's something to the way a person talks about subjects that are close to them, personally—and Reno is paying close attention, fascinated, his gaze sharp as he studies Joshua's face.

if he's surprised at all to hear in my case, confirming his suspicions, the only giveaway is a slight lift of his brow. otherwise, Reno just looks delighted as he sits back and briefly looks Joshua up and down. ]

The Phoenix in the flesh, huh? —Sorta. [ obviously not literally; Reno can imagine that if Joshua did this priming thing he speaks of, there would be a lot more heat and flame involved. ] Back home we use Phoenix down to bring people back when they're too far gone for a hi-potion or healing materia. Sounds like I have you to thank for keeping my sorry ass alive all these years.

[ Reno's not sure if that's also an aspect of the Phoenix as Joshua knows it, but given all the other similarities it doesn't seem out of the realm of possibility. ]

Mm... I ain't heard of anything like that. [ a crystal's curse, materia curse—it's not the use of the crystallized form that has negative effects on the body, at least not that Reno knows of. ] But now that we don't use mako anymore, hardly anybody's usin' materia either, so I guess we might never find out.

[feathering]

[ Well, he's not unaware of the Phoenix's feather and its magical and healing capabilities. He can even make a barrier to protect other people with these down! To think that the Phoenix would willingly give some of its feathers to the people, though. It sounds like a common item, from the sounds of it. ]

I can't say I have had people use that in that manner, before. The Phoenix would not let anyone take its feathers.

[ But still, good for the people of Gaia! ]

Then there are no more people who use magic? What is society like?

[astraphilia]

Who'm I to say if they're taken or given. [ Reno shrugs, spreading his hands in a mea culpa type gesture. it's not exactly that phoenix down is common, except maybe among those who have the greatest need for it—people who are often in the line of fire, like SOLDIER and Turks. ] But I'm fond of 'em all the same.

[ good for the people of Gaia indeed. not that Reno had considered for a second asking Joshua for a feather, but he has to grin a little as he firmly crosses that possibility out in his mental accounting of this conversation. ]

Society's... hangin' in there, [ comes the slow answer to that question. ] We might not have a—crystal's curse, you said? But we found our own ways to exploit the planet's life force, and we suffered the consequences. Now we're rebuilding. Startin' with not relying on mako—for magic or for energy. It's not easy, but people are tough.

[feathering]

[ Really- good for Gaia, then! Joshua is completely unaware of everything there, but he is happy nonetheless that the world's stopped relying on magic. He nods a couple of times. ]

That fills me with optimism.

[ Hopefully Valisthea would be able to rebuild the continent, and people will be happy. There are so many hardships along the way, but if they all work together, then they should be fine. People getting used to the lack of magic would be very difficult, and such a big adjustment, but they will need to do it in order to survive. ]

I must thank you for sharing these information with me. There are very little books about the lands outside Valisthea, let alone those of other worlds entirely. I daresay, it is a good way to broaden one's horizons.

[astraphilia]

[ optimism... although it feels a little odd to hear someone say, considering the weight of the past couple of years, Reno supposes he can't disagree. there is hope there, after all. the resilience of humankind in the face of tremendous suffering. ]

Oh, sure. Funny, the similiarities, huh? And if I didn't cuss like I do, we might never have known.

[ Tseng used to get on his case about his potty mouth—"not appropriate for your position, Reno, please"—and look how handy it's come in now. Reno has learned a whole host of interesting information about Joshua's world. ]

[feathering]

Perhaps not.

[ But he takes it as a good thing that he did. Good for you and your potty mouth, Reno! ]

I did not mean to take away the fun of the game we were playing, however.

[ Because they certainly did get distracted from it now. ]